I’ll admit, it’s been a while since my last English class; but like most of you, I was taught that you should never capitalize the word “Earth” (or for that matter, “Moon” or “Sun”). I know for a fact that my teachers were pretty good, because I knocked the ACT English and the SAT verbal out of the park.*

They were, however, wrong about this.

The rule makes perfect sense, of course, when “earth” is used as a synonym for “soil.” I get that. “I picked up the rich earth” uses the word as a common noun. But we’re talking about proper nouns here. Earth is a place, as is the Moon: Buzz Aldrin would certainly agree. And while no one especially wants to go to the Sun, the fact that you can go there (at least theoretically) is telling. (Some argue that the real issue is that the proper names for these three bodies are Terra, Luna and Sol, but that is nothing other than Roman cultural imperialism, which as an English speaker and a Protestant I am almost duty bound to reject.)

The rule has its exceptions: you may capitalize “Earth” if it is contained within a list of other celestial bodies which themselves must be capitalized (and it turns out, that list potentially includes absolutely all of them, aside from the three that are of the greatest importance to humans). By this rule, it is proper to write “I like it here on earth,” and indeed improper to do otherwise, even if in the very next phrase you write “especially here in Earth, Texas,” which believe it or not is an actual place.

How did this rule come about? Partly as a result of the King James Bible’s outsized impact on modern English. The King James, which capitalizes neither the words we’re discussing, “Heaven,” “Hell,” nor even pronouns related to God, was published in 1611, more than a century before modern English capitalization rules developed. Dictionary.com helpfully adds that all this may be a throwback to those times in which people believed our world to be separate and fundamentally distinct from the rest of Creation, which is to say that if you’re not capitalizing the name of our planet, you are pretty much a “flat-earther” who still believes “the sun” revolves around “the earth.”

That sums up exactly how I’ve always felt.

I’m not alone in feeling that way. A quick Google search found this complaint on the matter, recorded in Volume 31 of the Indiana School Journal, dated January 1886. Yes, that’s almost half a century before Goddard invented his rocket. So this is not a new discussion. But it’s also not intended primarily as a discussion about grammar.

Earth is a place, and thus “Earth” is a proper noun. It is far from the only place. Thinking about it as though it is the only place limits humanity in ways that are increasingly foolish and inappropriate. We are leaving this cradle of civilization, and should be: as Tsiolkovsy said, one cannot stay in the cradle forever.

To recognize that we live in a very specific place forces us to recognize that there are other places, and that it might be valuable to go to them (for Christians reading this, that is the essence of the Creation Mandate). It requires that we recognize that Earth really is special, thus enhancing our sensitivity toward our responsibilities of stewardship, without allowing us to think of Earth as though it were the whole Universe. It expands our ability to problem-solve, and how we think of ourselves and the rest of Creation. It opens up possibilities we would never otherwise consider and encourages our own creativity in response. It adds perspective, and with it wisdom, two of our most vital needs and two of God’s defining characteristics, attributes we desperately need to seek and to imitate.

Yes, capitalization may be a small matter. But life is largely a collection of small matters, subtleties we rarely consider but which collectively define us and the way in which we think and live.

This is one of those. And as we enter a new era, like that in which the first explorers began to leave the shores of Iberia, go past Madeira, the Canaries and the Azores and venture around the Cape of Good Hope and even to the New World, we need to alter our thinking as our forebears once did.

And when we do, we will soon stop speaking of “the world” or “the World,” but rather of “the Worlds.”

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*Oh, one last note: yes, I know that there are also a perfectly good rules prohibiting the introduction of sentences with conjunctions or the conclusion of them with prepositions (as I’ve done above and do frequently on this site). As to those clearly correct standards, I can only say that as I age, I am increasingly informal and disobedient.

About Rod Martin

Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.Peter ThielPayPal, Founders Fund, Facebook, Palantir

Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.Annual Bipartisan Conference of George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management

Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.Steve ForbesPresident and CEO, Forbes; Former Presidential Candidate

Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.Gov. Mike HuckabeeFormer Arkansas Governor and Presidential Candidate

Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.Dr. Gil AmelioExecutive Committee, AT&T; Former CEO, Apple Computer and National Semiconductor

Rod Martin has a proven track record of overwhelming success. I believe in him strongly.Dr. Ronnie FloydPresident, The Southern Baptist Convention

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Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.Eric JacksonFormer Chief Marketing Officer, PayPal.com; Author, The PayPal Wars; Founder and CEO, CapLinked.com

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America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.Randy TateFormer Deputy Whip, U.S. House of Representatives

Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.José GonzálezPresident, Semila

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Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.Dr. Tom AscolExecutive Director, Founders Ministries, Southern Baptist Convention

I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.Hon. Paul PresslerRetired Justice, Texas Court of Appeals; Past President, Council for National Policy

Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.George GilderFounding Father of Supply-Side Economics, Globally-Recognized Technology Guru

If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.Hon. John Paul HammerschmidtU.S. House Republican Leadership, 1967-1993

A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.Hugh O'BrianLegendary Actor; Founder, Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY)

Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.Dr. Harald OttOtt Laboratory for Organ Engineering and Regeneration, Harvard Medical School

Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.Jane Russell"40 Most Iconic Movie Goddesses of All Time", Glamour

Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.Dr. Edward TellerFather of the H-Bomb